Learning to Lope From the Ground

Teaching a horse to willingly lope on cue from the ground has benefits that translate to the saddle.

A lope carries a horse and rider to many places: across the arena, from one barrel to the next, through the arena in preparation for a sliding stop, and over the range to check on a herd of heifers.

Whatever the purpose for it might be, the lope is a frequently used gait for a variety of disciplines and work scenarios. A horse that knows how to execute a lope departure well provides their rider with a smooth transition that’s easy to ride.

Teaching a horse how to lope off in a relaxed and balanced state under saddle is a lesson that can start on the ground. Horse trainer and owner of Cohesive Horsemanship, Tessa Nicolet, shares a step-by-step groundwork exercise that horsemen can use to teach their horses how to lope on cue with confidence.

Prepare for Takeoff

Helping a horse learn to lope on cue can feel daunting. After all, a lot is at stake. A horse that hasn’t been taught how to pick up the lope properly may lose its balance as it transitions, causing the horse to lean during the departure, Nicolet says.

She explains that on its own, a horse often uses the lope to flee predators, and a prey animal that loses its balance while fleeing may meet an untimely end. So, when a horse being ridden repeatedly loses its balance during lope departures, it may panic and associate the movement with a flight response. Crow-hopping after picking up the lope and breaking into a run when given the lope cue are two examples of this.

To avoid this situation, Nicolet teaches her horses the cue for lope departures from the ground first. She uses the “Lope to Relax Exercise” to teach the horse that the lope can be a relaxing gait.

“I want people to start thinking about the lope not being necessarily a faster gait but being a willingness to change the rhythm of the gait,” Nicolet says.

Lope to Relax Exercise
Tools needed: 20-foot lunge line and a lunge whip

Part One:

1. Begin by asking the horse to circle you on a 20-foot lunge line.
2. Pick a location where the horse will pass repeatedly while lunging on the circle. Then, using a voice command of your choice, ask the horse to lope each time it passes that spot until it responds correctly. (If possible, Nicolet advises choosing a location where the horse passes between you and a fence. This spot can make the horse feel “squeezed” for space when it passes through it and encourage forward movement.)
3. Once you see the horse make the smallest effort to respond correctly (even taking one stride at the lope), reward its effort by stopping the horse and letting it relax.
4. Continue to build on the exercise by repeating the first three steps and asking the horse to give a little more effort at the lope each time it does the exercise.

Part 1A. Using a voice command, ask the horse to lope each time it passes a pre-selected spot until it responds correctly. Photography by Kayli Hanley Part 1B. If the horse doesn’t understand the voice command alone, build pressure at the selected location by waving the whip behind the horse. Photography by Kayli Hanley

Note: If the horse doesn’t pick up the lope at the location you picked, let it relax back into a comfortable gait around the remainder of the circle, Nicolet says. When it comes around the circle to your selected location again, ask for the lope in the same spot you asked previously. If the horse does not understand what you are asking using the voice command alone, slowly build pressure at your selected location by waving the whip behind the horse in addition to giving the voice command until you observe the horse try to respond correctly. Reward the smallest effort.

Part Two:

Once the horse understands what the voice command for lope means and can pick up the gait in a relaxed manner, teach the horse to maintain the lope around the circle.

1. Begin by using the voice command you used in part one to ask the horse to lope when it passes the location you picked.
2. Once the horse successfully picks up the lope, allow it to continue for several strides before stopping and rewarding the horse before it decides to break the gait.
3. Continue to build on the exercise by repeating the first two steps and asking the horse to lope a few strides further each time it does the exercise. Every time the horse is successful, stop and reward it.
4. Once the horse maintains the lope from the ground and remains relaxed, saddle up and restart the exercise from the saddle. Be sure to use the same voice command and ask the horse to lope at the same location you picked when you taught the exercise from the ground.

Part 2A. Stop and reward the horse before it decides to break the gait. Photography by Kayli Hanley. Part 2B. Build on the exercise by asking the horse to lope a few strides further each time it does the exercise. Photography by Kayli Hanley

Note: If the horse breaks gait before you ask it to stop, ask the horse to pick up the lope again by waving your lunge whip behind it to create pressure, Nicolet says. Once the horse is loping again, return to the exercise.

Smooth and Balanced

Whether demonstrating power and technique in the show pen or delivering a stress-relieving ride in an open field, a horse that can produce a smooth, balanced lope departure is a joy to ride. When working on the movement at home, Nicolet encourages horsemen to focus on instilling willingness and confidence in their horses.

“It’s more about teaching your horse to be willing to lope,” Nicolet says. “Not to just dive into it for the sake of speed.”

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